New Hampshire DUI Checkpoints

 

When law enforcement officers in New Hampshire set up temporary roadblocks at a specific point in the road to stop all cars and talk to drivers to try to determine if they are driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, this is a DUI checkpoint. In New Hampshire, while these checkpoints do catch and arrest impaired motorist, one of the primary motivations for having them is so that they will act as a deterrent, making other drivers believe that they could be caught if they drive while intoxicated. To this end, New Hampshire law enforcement makes an aggressive attempt to publicize all checkpoints in major media publications before the event takes place.

 

DUI checkpoints can occur year-round, but tend to increase around holidays and large events where drinking is known to take place. Most often, these checkpoints will be set up late at night or early in the morning on weekends, and tend to be in highly-trafficked areas that are close to establishments that serve alcohol. Another reason that an area might see more checkpoints is because a number or alcohol-related accidents and arrests have occurred there recently.

 

Are These Checkpoints Legal in New Hampshire?

 

Yes. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the legality of DUI checkpoints in the 1990 case of Michigan v. Sitz, saying that they believed the public interest these checkpoints served (e.g. detecting and removing intoxicated drivers from the road) outweighed any intrusion it caused on the lives of the motorists it affected. Furthermore, they declared that it was not a violation of the illegal search and seizure ban set down in the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution since the “sole purpose” of the checkpoints was to detect DUI.

 

Since then, 11 states have outlawed DUI checkpoints, arguing that they violate their state constitutions, but so far New Hampshire has continued to abide by the Supreme Court’s ruling, provided that checkpoints in the state follow specific protocols, including getting the court to authorize each specific checkpoint and publishing advance notice of the checkpoint to the public in at least one newspaper.

 

If you find yourself stopped at a New Hampshire DUI checkpoint, you need to be aware of your rights and what is expected of you.

 

If You Are Stopped at a New Hampshire DUI Checkpoint

Bring your vehicle to a complete stop and lower your window so that you can speak to the officer conducting your check. Generally speaking, each stop will take less than 5 minutes. During your inspection, the officer will tell you why you were stopped, ask for your driver’s license so that they can run it and make sure it is valid, and offer you a survey that allows you to comment on how the checkpoint was run.

 

Throughout this conversation, remain calm and polite. The officer will be looking for signs that you are intoxicated, and you do not want to give him or her any reason to suspect you. Keep in mind that while you want to be polite and friendly with the officer, you are not required to answer any questions or provide any information beyond your name, address, driver’s license, and registration information. If they ask other questions, it may be in your best interest to decline to answer rather than risk incriminating yourself. Also remember that it is always within your rights to ask to speak to a New Hampshire DUI lawyer.

 

If the officer asks you to take a field sobriety test, you have the option of refusing to take it, but consider carefully. In New Hampshire, your license will be suspended if you refuse to take the test. However, it may still be the best decision for you to make, because not taking it reduces the evidence they have to use against you, and may even help you to avoid arrest altogether. You should also know that the results of these tests are determined by the administering officer, making them highly subjective. Some New Hampshire DUI lawyers even go so far as to say that the tests are designed for you to fail them.

 

What to Do After You Are Arrested at a New Hampshire DUI Checkpoint

 

Before you do anything else, tell them that you want to speak to a lawyer and refuse to answer any further questions until you do. Anything you say can and will be used against you, so silence is one of the best defenses you can have.

 

You will likely be asked to take a BAC test if you haven’t been asked to do so already. Depending on what kind of machine the police department has, it’s possible this could just be a simple breath test, but it could also involve taking your blood. If you fail the test, don’t think it is the end of the world. You won’t be convicted automatically for a high BAC reading. In fact, any experienced New Hampshire DUI lawyer can tell you that there are numerous reasons for a machine to give false positive reading, including user error, improper calibration, and even differences in your body physiology.

 

To find out your options and work with someone who knows the ins and outs of New Hampshire DUI law, including how to get your falsely high BAC reading thrown out of court, contact an experienced DUI attorney today.